The ferry service along the Brooklyn and Queens waterfront has become more of a crucial link for commuters as development and population has exponentially grown in recent years.

With the anticipation of major waterfront expansions like the Greenpoint Landing and 77 Commercial Street projects in Greenpoint potentially adding tens of thousands of new residents to the neighborhood, it is now time to rethink the stability of transportation structure along the waterfront.

The Economic Development Corporation (EDC) recently released the Preliminary Citywide Ferry Study Report and Ferry System Policy Paper, outlining some of the recent developments on the nearly 500 miles of city waterfront.

What was shown should not be much of a surprise to those who live in the outer boroughs, but it should open some eyes when it comes to how widespread the growth really has become.

New reports show that there has been an addition of nearly 600,000 square feet of residential and commercial space, and there has been a 4.9 percent increase in development along East River Ferry stops in the boroughs over the last year alone.

Additionally, reports from the Department of City Planning also show there has been a 2 percent overall population increase throughout the city since 2010, or 161,564 additional New Yorkers.

With these new numbers at their disposal, the EDC also looked at nearly 60 possible locations for new ferries, and narrowed down their study to potentially six new route configurations.

With this wide-ranging development along the waterfront, transportation should be the next key focal point in both Queens and Brooklyn.

In portions of the outer boroughs that are seeing residential development for the first time and where transit options are limited, ferry service should be the city’s big step towards solving waterfront transit issues.

No doubt about it...ferries are an awesome commute...they're clean, green, quick, efficient, comfortable...and no doubt as the Ledger reports: they can spur smart economic and residential development. Rockaway needs to keep it's ferry, and I think it s/b extended to JFK: what a way for business and tourist travelers to commute from SE Queens to Manhattan!

Finally...THIS IS NOT NEW...some guy Vanderbilt introduced high speed ferries to NYC 150 years ago!!!...PJS